Georgia mayor's death ruled a suicide

The Houston County Medical Examiner has ruled the death of Warner Robins Mayor Donald Walker as a suicide, saying the gunshot wound that killed him Monday was self-inflicted. Walker, 60, had been the mayor for 15 years of Warner Robins, the central Georgia community that's home to Robins Air Force base.

WARNER ROBINS, Ga. -- The Houston County Medical Examiner has ruled the death of Warner Robins Mayor Donald Walker as a suicide, saying the gunshot wound that killed him was self-inflicted.

Walker's wife, Patricia, called 911 just after 11 a.m. Monday to report that the mayor had been shot. Officials rushed him to Houston Medical Center, then transferred him to the Medical Center of Central Georgia, where he was pronounced dead shortly before 2 p.m.

A Warner Robins Police Department statement issued Tuesday afternoon states the autopsy is still incomplete while officials wait for toxicology and other lab reports, which could take several weeks to be returned from GBI's crime lab, No further information about the investigation will be made public, the release stated.

Walker, 60, who'd been the mayor for 15 years, was part of a legacy that for decades shaped politics in Warner Robins, a central Georgia community about 120 miles south of Atlanta and home to Robins Air Force Base.

In the hours after Walker's death, praise for the Warner Robins mayor came from colleagues in the local, county, state and even federal levels of government. Rep. Jim Marshall, D-Ga., (himself a former mayor of Macon) called Walker's life "a life worth celebrating" in a written statement.

"His exceptional legacy as mayor will be difficult to match."

In a statement released from his Washington, office, Sen. Saxby Chambliss, R-Ga., said "Donald and I were friends for several years. My thoughts and prayers go out to his family during this difficult time."